RG3 doesn't think Rob Parker should have been fired

Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III didn't like how former ESPN commentator Rob Parker questioned his commitment to black culture last year, but he also thinks it shouldn't have necessarily cost Parker his job.

In an interview with GQ magazine, Griffin pointed out that his friend, rapper Quistar, may have gone too far with a song that mocked Parker in the wake of the incident.

"I haven't blown the song up, because I don't think it's right to make fun of Rob Parker for losing his job," Griffin told GQ. "There's some wrong in what he said, but there's some wrong in him losing his job as well. And I don't want people to think that I, you know, that I'm trying to stick it to Rob Parker, or that I'm happy he lost his job. But I was very unhappy with the things he said. I mean, why did he say that?"

Parker was first suspended last December and then fired from the network in January for the controversial comments in reference Griffin's "blackness."

"Is he a brother, or is he a cornball brother?" Parker stated on ESPN's First Take. "He's not really. OK, he's black, he kind of does the thing, but he's not really down with the cause. He's not one of us. He's kind of black, but he's not really, like, the guy you really want to hang out with because he's off to something else."

After Parker made his comments on Dec. 13, Griffin took the high road with his response on Twitter (@RGIII) that night: "I'm thankful for a lot of things in life and One of those things is your support. Thank you."

Parker, after his suspension, offered a lengthy apology and praised Griffin in the process.

"I blew it and I’m sincerely sorry," Parker said on TwitLonger. "I completely understand how the issue of race in sports is a sensitive one and needs to be handled with great care."

"I regrettably introduced some points that I never should have and I completely understand the strong response to them, including ESPN’s reaction. Perhaps most importantly, the attention my words have brought to one of the best and brightest stars in all of sports is an unintended and troubling result."

“Robert Griffin III is a talented athlete who not only can do great things on the field, but off the field handles himself in a way we are all taught—with dignity, respect and pride."

On Jan. 8, ESPN, despite Parker's apology, still made the decision to remove him from its airwaves for good by not renewing his contract.

In addition to being a talented all-around young quarterback, Griffin has been the worthy new face of the Redskins' franchise because of how he speaks his mind and can do it with class. It should be no surprise he's able to forgive Parker, even if he can't forget what he said.